Delhi: ‘Vote chori’ protest hits the barricades, Opposition MPs detained

LoP in the Lok Sabha and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi during a protest march on Monday. Pic/PTI

Opposition MPs, including Leaders of Opposition Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge, took out a protest march on Monday from Parliament House to the Election Commission against the revision of electoral rolls in Bihar and alleged "vote chori" but were stopped midway by the police and detained amid high drama.

Police put up barricades outside PTI Building on the way to prevent the MPs, protesting the voter roll revision in Bihar and the alleged poll rigging, from marching forward. As the MPs were stopped, many of them sat on the road and raised slogans while some women MPs, including saree-clad TMC's Mahua Moitra and the Congress' Sanjana Jatav and Jothimani, climbed the barricading and raised slogans against the EC.

They were later whisked away by police in buses lined up along the road and taken to the Parliament Street Police Station. All the MPs were later released. "This fight is not political, but it is aimed at saving the Constitution. This fight is for ‘one man, one vote' and we want a clean, pure voter list," Rahul Gandhi said as he was being taken away in a bus after being detained.

BJP slams protest as plot for chaos

The BJP on Monday slammed opposition parties over their protest against the voter roll revision in Bihar and alleged vote theft in past elections, accusing them of trying to create anarchy in the country.

Addressing a press conference at the BJP headquarters, Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan termed Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's allegation of vote theft against the ruling BJP and the Election Commission a lie and said the Congress has been resorting to such tactics as it has no other issues to raise.

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